In what will come as a surprise to virtually nobody, a new brain study shows that dogs don't just respond to our words, they also respond to how we say them. It's a finding that suggests dogs evolved their keen listening skills as a result of domestication.»11/26/14 9:40am 11/26/14 9:40am

Frank Swain, who has been going deaf since he was in his twenties, had his hearing aids tweaked so that he could hear Wi-Fi fields wherever he goes. Swain wrote about the experience for New Scientist, describing what has become a regular part of his day. »11/17/14 3:00am 11/17/14 3:00am

It takes an average of just over two seconds for most people to identify this song, which a new experiment describes as the most easily recognizable song to ever chart. But how does that work? »11/05/14 10:55am 11/05/14 10:55am

Losing your sight early in life is often said to heighten other senses, particularly hearing. A new study now shows that even a short, weeklong stint in complete darkness can result in superhuman hearing, at least temporarily. This suggests that a kind of darkness therapy may help restore hearing to adults suffering… »2/07/14 1:15pm 2/07/14 1:15pm

Ever wonder how your hearing compares to the average person your age? Give this hearing test by the folks at AsapSCIENCE a listen – then learn why you can (or can't) hear the frequencies being played in the video. »8/14/13 1:53pm 8/14/13 1:53pm

What is the difference between hearing and listening? According to auditory neuroscientist Seth S. Horowitz, the answer is attention. Hearing, he explains in a recent NY Times op-ed, is a passive action, an ever-engaged sense that is capable of not just perceiving, but triggering a reaction to, outside stimuli several… »11/15/12 7:05am 11/15/12 7:05am

Every human has limits. You can only run so fast, jump so high, and go for so long without water. But what about restrictions upon our five senses, those tools that we use to perceive and understand our surroundings? Here are ten limitations on human perception that have a direct impact on how we understand the world. »7/17/12 10:26am 7/17/12 10:26am

It's often said that when you lose one sense you heighten the others — and now we have scientific evidence to back it up. New research published in the Journal of Neuroscience has shown that people who are born deaf process the sense of touch differently than people who are born with normal hearing. »7/11/12 1:35pm 7/11/12 1:35pm

Our closest evolutionary relatives are chimpanzees, and both of our species are much more related to each other than to gorillas, the next closest relative. But a new genome analysis reveals we share some unexpected traits with our massive gorilla cousins. »3/07/12 11:42am 3/07/12 11:42am

Bats rely on their hearing more than any other mammal. After all, bats navigate the night sky by hearing the results of their echolocation, their natural sonar system. Turns out that's just the beginning of what makes bat-hearing amazing. »11/15/11 11:49am 11/15/11 11:49am

Remember the last time you were at a noisy party — the kind of party where you have trouble understanding what the person next to you is saying? Scientists call this the "cocktail party problem," and use it to describe the difficulty that humans have understanding speech in the presence of background noise. »9/13/11 5:00pm 9/13/11 5:00pm

Our brains pay less attention to aspects of the world that appear to remain the same. We need this mental relief to experience life without being overwhelmed, but it can keep us from noticing when patterns change. »11/22/10 2:09pm 11/22/10 2:09pm

The McGurk effect is a powerful illusion where our brains hear the wrong noise if they're presented with visual evidence that something else is being said. Now we've discovered what part of the brain is behind this strange effect. »11/18/10 2:00pm 11/18/10 2:00pm

Even in loud settings with tons of different noises, we seem to have a knack for focusing in on the most important sounds, particularly sounds of danger. If we're anything like bats, it's because our neurons make those sounds louder. »11/14/10 3:15pm 11/14/10 3:15pm

According to evolutionary biologists, movie music contains "unexpected" sounds that trigger primal reactions from audiences. In other words, our brains are hardwired to respond with fear to the Jaws soundtrack. »5/26/10 6:40am 5/26/10 6:40am

As humans age, their hearing naturally grows less acute because they begin to lose tiny sensory hairs (pictured, magnified) in their inner ears that convert sound waves into neurological signals. But now scientists have figured out how to genetically-engineer the cells that generate these sensory hairs. This is a…
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